1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to improvements in disinfecting devices, and, more particularly, to disinfecting devices of the type which can be applied to disinfect and/or deodorize parts of a telephone handset.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In hotels, motels, hospitals and other places of public convenience, often times for the comfort of the guests or patrons steps are taken to provide clean and sanitary conditions. One area which has been overlooked in the past is that of the telephone usually provided in such locations. Some hotels attempt to sanitize the telephone handset by applying an aerosol disinfectant to the speaker and earphone parts of the handset. This, however, is undesirable in that it may introduce residue building fluids into the handset. Also, after such aerosol sprays have been applied, no trace or evidence remains on the handset to comfort or assure a subsequent user that the handset has been sterilized or disinfected.
Various disinfecting attachment devices have been proposed, such as those exemplified in U.S. Pat. Nos. 823,494; 1,400,334; 1,386,975; 2,507,375 and 1,367,267. The devices shown in those patents, however, are intended to be in place during operation of the telephone, and which may not only interfere with the ease of use of modern day handsets, but may affect the audio fidelity, as well.
More recent sanitary covers are shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,169,171; 2,450,703 and 2,938,967. All of these embodiments are intended for operation during use, and require the user to himself carry a supply of the devices and apply the device himself to the handset.
A permanently attachable or reusable sanitary device is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 2,650,269 in which a supply of individually disposable sanitary pads is carried in a dispenser apparatus, and after use, the user can dispose of the topmost one of the pads to ready the telephone for the next user.